Top Ways to Save on Bessemer Car Insurance

Are you sick and tired of being strong-armed each month for car insurance? Your situation is no different than many other Alabama consumers. You have so many to buy insurance from, and though it is a good thing to have multiple companies, lots of choices makes it harder to compare rates.

It's important to shop coverage around before your policy renews because rates are constantly changing. Just because you found the best rates two years ago a different company probably has better rates today. There is too much inaccurate information about car insurance online but I'm going to show you some great ways to find cheap car insurance.

Save big with these discounts

Companies don't list all their discounts very clearly, so the following is a list of some of the more common as well as the least known savings tricks you should be using. If you're not getting every credit available, you are throwing money away.

55 and Retired - If you qualify as a senior citizen, you may be able to get a small decrease in premiums.
Claim Free - Claim-free drivers pay less as compared to drivers who are more careless.
Sign Online - A handful of insurance companies will give a small break just for signing your application over the internet.
New Car Discount - Insuring a new car is cheaper due to better safety requirements for new cars.
Passive Restraint Discount - Factory air bags may earn rate discounts up to 30%.

It's important to note that most discounts do not apply to the entire cost. Some only reduce individual premiums such as liability, collision or medical payments. Just because you may think having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, you're out of luck.

Tips to Get Lower Bessemer Rates

Smart consumers have a good feel for the different types of things that help determine your car insurance rates. Knowing what influences your rates empowers consumers to make smart changes that may reward you with big savings.

The following are some of the items used by your company to calculate rates.

Women pay lower rates - The statistics show that women are safer drivers than men. However, this does not mean women are BETTER drivers than men. They both tend to get into accidents at a similar rate, but the males have costlier accidents. They also receive more costly citations such as reckless driving. Young males are most likely to cause an accident and therefore are the most expensive to insure.
Occupation reflects on rates - Did you know your job can affect your rates? Jobs such as real estate brokers, business owners and financial analysts have higher average rates because of high stress and lots of time spent at work. Conversely, professions such as farmers, engineers and performers get better rates.
Pay less after the wedding - Getting married can get you a discount on your policy. It translates into being more mature and it's proven that drivers who are married are more cautious.
Older drivers pay less - Young drivers in Alabama are known to be more careless in a vehicle so they pay higher car insurance rates. Mature drivers are viewed as being more responsible, file fewer claims and receive fewer citations.
How's your driving record? - Your driving citation history has a lot to do with how much you pay for insurance. Drivers who don't get tickets have lower premiums compared to drivers with tickets. Even one speeding ticket can bump up the cost by twenty percent. Drivers who have flagrant citations such as DUI or reckless driving may need to file a SR-22 with their state motor vehicle department in order to keep their license.
Don't get talked into coverage you don't need - There are a ton of extra bells and whistles that you can buy on your policy. Coverages for roadside assistance, towing coverage and additional equipment coverage may be costing you every month. These coverages may sound good when you first buy your policy, but now you might not need them so eliminate them to save money.
Bump up deductibles to save - Coverage for physical damage, termed comprehensive and collision coverage on your policy, is used to repair damage to your car. A few examples of covered claims are a windshield shattered by a rock, vandalism, and windstorm damage. Deductibles for physical damage are how much you are required to spend if you file a covered claim. The more expense you have to pay, the less your company will charge you for insurance.
Multi-policy discounts can save money - Many insurers will give a discount to policyholders who carry more than one policy in the form of a multi-policy discount. Even with this discount, you still need to compare other company rates to verify if the discount is saving money. You may still find better rates by splitting coverages up.

Car insurance ads bend the truth

Consumers get pounded daily by advertisements for the lowest price auto insurance from the likes of Progressive, GEICO, Allstate and State Farm. They all seem to make an identical promise that you can save after switching your coverage to them.

How does each company make the same claim?

All the different companies can use profiling for the type of customer that earns them a profit. A good example of a desirable insured could be between 25 and 40, is a homeowner, and chooses high deductibles. A customer who meets those qualifications will get very good rates and most likely will save when switching.

Drivers who fall outside these standards will have to pay a higher premium and ends up with business going elsewhere. The ads say "customers that switch" not "people who quote" save that much money. That's why insurance companies can state the savings. Because of the profiling, drivers should compare many company's rates. Because you never know the company that will give you the biggest savings.

Learn more today

Additional detailed information can be read at the Alabama Department of Insurance website. Consumers can learn about insurance regulations, read industry bulletins, get help finding coverage, and read enforcement actions against agents and companies.

A tidy conclusion

When buying insurance coverage, it's very important that you do not skimp on coverage in order to save money. There are many occasions where an accident victim reduced full coverage and found out when filing a claim that their decision to reduce coverage ended up costing them more. Your aim should be to find the BEST coverage at a price you can afford.

Lower-priced car insurance can be sourced from both online companies as well as from independent agents in Bessemer, so you should compare both to have the best selection. Some insurance companies don't offer you the ability to get quotes online and most of the time these small insurance companies sell through independent agents.